What is Justification?

Precious words for the Christian’s soul from 11.1 of The Second London Baptist Confession of Faith.

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For a certain time, the judicial law stood in force…

“Thus far concerning God’s perpetual law [the moral law]: now concerning the law of God for a certain time.

The law of God for a certain time, is that which was only for a certain time prescribed to the people of Israel, and is abrogated by the coming of the Messiah.
And that law is either ceremonial or judicial.

The ceremonial law, is that law which gave commandment concerning ceremonies to be observed in the public worship of God, which did serve to instruct the people of Israel, of the manner of their eternal salvation, by Christ to come.

The judicial law, is a law, which gives commandment concerning the political government of the Jews, that is to say, of the order and offices of magistrates, judgments, punishments, contracts, of the distinguishing of governments given and published for this end, that justice, and public peace might be of force among citizens, and the laws of God might be delivered from contempt.”

“The proper freedom of the faithful under the new testament, is specially called by some Christian Liberty, because it belongs to the faithful alone under the new testament, who in the strict signification of the name, are called Christians, for difference of the ancient believers commonly called Jews.

And that is twofold, freedom from the laws of Moses, ceremonial and judicial, and freedom in indifferent things.

Freedom from the law of Moses ceremonial and judicial, is that by Which Christians are loosed from the observation of these laws, namely, so far forth as they only pertain to the law of Moses, and the tutorship of the ancient people, Act. 15. I Cor. 9.19. 2 Cor. 3.17. Heb. 9.10.

For such laws as belong to the law of nature, and which have bound all nations, are not abrogated.”

From Amandus Polanus’ (1561-1610) “The Substance of Christian Religion” in Latin “Syntagma Theologiae Christianae.” The English version is a summarized form of the Latin work.

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The Expiration of the Positive Aspects of the Judicial Law of Moses

“Therefore the judicial law was positive, and therefore Christians are not compelled to govern their commonwealths in the same manner, in which the Israelites’ commonwealth was governed, but it is lawful for them to vie [i.e. match one thing with another] the political laws of their nations, which agree with the laws of nature, and the Ten Commandments, according to the commandment, Rom. 13.1. Let every soul be subject to the higher power.

What opinions do oppose this doctrine of the law?

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7. Of those brain-sick heads, who will have Christian commonwealths to be governed only by the political laws of the Jews.”

From William Bucanus’ A Body of Divinity.